In Turkish, forming the plural of a noun is simple: just add the suffix -lar or -ler to the word. The choice between the plural suffixes -ler and -lar is determined by the vowel harmony:
- If the last vowel of the word is thick (a,ı,o,u), -lar is added.
- If the last vowel of the word is thin (e,i,ö,ü), -ler is added.
Table of Contents
Plural Examples in Turkish
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| kitap (book) | kitaplar (books) |
| şapka (hat) | şapkalar (hats) |
| ev (house) | evler (houses) |
| araba (car) | arabalar (cars) |
| öğrenci (student) | öğrenciler (students) |
| kapı (door) | kapılar (doors) |
| köpek (dog) | köpekler (dogs) |
| okul (school) | okullar (schools) |
| sözlük (dictionary) | sözlükler (dictionaries) |
| köy (village) | köyler (villages) |
| çocuk (child) | çocuklar (children) |
| eczane (pharmacy) | eczaneler (pharmacies) |
Here are a few sentences using plurals in Turkish:
- Bahçelerde güzel çiçekler var. (There are beautiful flowers in the gardens.)
- Öğrenciler sınıfta sessizce oturuyor. (The students are sitting quietly in the classroom.)
- Kediler ve köpekler parkta oynuyor. (Cats and dogs are playing in the park.)
- Yeni kitaplar raflarda sergileniyor. (New books are displayed on the shelves.)
- Çocuklar oyun alanında eğleniyor. (The children are having fun in the playground.)
- Kapılar kapandıktan sonra etkinlik başladı. (The event began after the doors closed.)
- Şehirler büyüdükçe yeni binalar inşa ediliyor. (As cities grow, new buildings are constructed.)
- Komşular toplantıda bir araya geldi. (The neighbors gathered at the meeting.)
- Araba yarışlarında hızlı arabalar dikkati çekti. (Fast cars attracted attention in the car races.)
- Köylerde insanlar geleneklerini sürdürüyor. (People are preserving their traditions in the villages.)
Exceptions to Vowel Harmony with Plural Loan Words
Be careful, some borrowed words from foreign languages don’t comply with vowel harmony rules when forming the plural. Here are some common exceptions:
- saat (clock) → saatler
- kalp (heart) → kalpler
- hayal (dream) → hayaller
- alkol (alcohol) → alkoller
- seyahat (trip) → seyahatler
Plurals after Numbers and Quantifiers
When nouns appear after numbers or quantifiers like “çok” (many/much), they remain singular and do not take a plural suffix. Here are a few examples:
- iki kitap (two books)
- beş ev (five houses)
- üç bilet (three tickets)
- çok araba (many cars)
- az insan (a few people)
- Masada üç kalem var. (There are three pens on the table.)
- Parkta çok çocuk oynuyor. (Many children are playing in the park.)
- Dolapta beş bardak buldum. (I found five glasses in the cupboard.)
